LA Could Face Losing Millions for Police Using Nonlethal Bullets
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The City of Los Angeles could lose millions if it is sued over the Los Angeles Police Department's alleged use of rubber bullets, case history suggests.
Over the past few days, there have been reports of police using rubber bullets during protests and riots in Los Angeles.
If people allegedly shot by the police sue the city, they may receive payouts, as suggested by the damages awarded to plaintiffs in similar cases considered by California civil courts. There is no evidence that there has been any litigation at this point.
Newsweek reached out to the LAPD and the City of Los Angeles via email for comment.
Why It Matters
A series of immigration raids on Friday sparked a large protest in Los Angeles over the weekend. In response to some incidents of violence and looting, President Donald Trump announced the deployment of 2,000 National Guard without California Governor Gavin Newsom's consent.
The demonstrations are among the most intense wave of public opposition to federal immigration enforcement since Trump returned to office in January.
What To Know
As the protests have intensified, there have been reports that the LAPD is using rubber bullets against protesters. An Australian journalist was also struck. A British news photographer said that he had to undergo emergency surgery after a plastic bullet hit his thigh.
In previous cases, court ordered payments to people who officers shot with rubber bullets. In March 2023, a federal jury awarded $375,000 to Deon Jones after he was shot in the face with a rubber bullet by an LAPD officer during a May 2020 protest.
In May 2024, Benjamin Montemayor was awarded $1.5 million after being shot in the testicles with a foam projectile in a 2020 protest, an injury that required surgery.
Protesters confront police on the 101 Freeway near the Metropolitan Detention Center of downtown Los Angeles, on June 8, 2025.
Protesters confront police on the 101 Freeway near the Metropolitan Detention Center of downtown Los Angeles, on June 8, 2025.
AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
What People Are Saying
Matthew Mangino, a former district attorney in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, told Newsweek: "A jury verdict in a California Federal Court found the LA police's use of non-lethal bullets during a protest was 'malicious, oppressive, or in reckless disregard of' plaintiff's rights. That opens the door to federal 1983 civil rights actions for the same conduct.
"The continued use of non-lethal ammunition that cause bodily injury, and in some cases serious bodily injury, is going to open the City of Los Angeles to civil liability."
Patrick Wilcken, Amnesty International's researcher on Military, Security and Policing issues previously said in a report about rubber bullets: "We believe that legally-binding global controls on the manufacture and trade in less lethal weapons, including KIPs [kinetic impact projectiles], along with effective guidelines on the use of force are urgently needed to combat an escalating cycle of abuses."
What Happens Next
Newsom has asked the Trump administration to withdraw federal troops from Los Angeles. During a press conference on Sunday, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said that multiple people had been arrested that day.
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